Morten Gamst Pedersen gives Blackburn late win over Leicester

Saturday 25 August 2012 12.17 EDT
First published on Saturday 25 August 2012 12.17 EDT

Much more of this and the new Ewood anthem will be "There's only One Keano". Two home wins in the space of four days and up to third in the Championship, the Blackburn players are silencing the critics of their manager, who were again chanting "We want Kean out" until Morten Gamst Pedersen turned their complaints into celebration with a handsome late winner.

Steve Kean, the most unloved manager since Brian Clough's 44-day sojourn at Leeds, was again reminded of his unpopularity for much of a strange match in which the better team lost. At 1-1, with Rovers very much second best, the Lancastrian natives were again restless, but their mood was lifted towards the stratosphere after 78 minutes when Pedersen fastened on to a mishit long shot from the substitute Rubén Rochina, took the ball down and coolly lofted a right-footed shot over Kasper Schmeichel and into the far corner, from left to right. Interestingly, he immediately ran to the bench and high-fived Kean.

Improbably, given the balance of play, the manager's luck had changed, and all was sweetness and light at the final whistle. That said, the applause will hardly have registered on the Richter Scale. The crowd may have been an improvement on the 13,562 who attended the midweek victory over Hull – Rovers' lowest attendance for nearly 20 years – but Leicester's travelling support will easily have accounted for the extra 400.

Kean said: "It's our responsibility to win the fans back and the only way is with points and wins. I'm sure those who came will have gone away happy." Happy and pleasantly surprised.

Leicester would have opened the scoring early but for the instinctive save with which Paul Robinson kept out David Nugent's close range header, and the former England goalkeeper supplied another reminder of his pedigree after half an hour, when he repelled Andy King's shot from seven yards.

Reprieved, it was Rovers who went ahead two minutes later, with their only attack of note in the first half. Nuno Gomes received a squared pass from Jason Lowe and scored with a low shot from inside the D. Robinson made another decent save before half-time, from Nugent's 25-yarder, and despite the advantageous scoreline, the poverty of Blackburn's attack had been such that Kean sent on David Goodwillie in place of Edinho for the second half.

Danny Murphy has been recruited as Rovers' new playmaker but his lack of influence, and consequent frustration, saw him booked after 49 minutes.

Shortly after that, Robinson denied Nugent yet again, sprawling to his right to keep out the firm, downward header with which the one-cap wonder met Ben Marshall's corner. The equaliser which was the least Leicester deserved arrived after 55 minutes when a maladroit clearance by Scott Dann succeeded only in presenting possession to Jamie Vardy, who had time to set himself and take aim before beating Robinson with a low drive from near the penalty spot. Cue loud chorusses of "Kean Out."

Vardy thought he had won it for Leicester in the 74th minute, but his header was contentiously flagged offside. Instead, Pedersen was the hero, and Goodwillie should really have made it 3-1 with virtually the last kick of the game.